Red Dress Day is approaching in Prince Albert, and the event has become an important fixture for organizations and community groups around Saskatchewan.
In past years, organizations ranging from the Prince Albert Police Service, to the Prince Albert Grand Council (PAGC), to students at Carlton Comprehensive Public High School have held ceremonies or events on May 5. The goal is to raise awareness about the large number of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit people.
“I think it’s really important for education and awareness because it is an issue in our society and it went a long time without anybody acknowledging it,” PAGC Health and Social Development Director Shirley Woods told the Daily Herald in 2024. “As we move forward, you always need to start with awareness before you can bring about change, and really, that’s what we’re looking for is a change.”
The 2024 ceremony was an important one in Prince Albert. The PAGC unveiled its new Sisters in Spirit monument at the riverbank. The monument is dedicated to local women, girls, and two-spirit people who have been murdered or gone missing.
In past years a number of influential provincial leaders have travelled to Prince Albert for the ceremony. The most recent was former Saskatchewan RCMP Assistant Commissioner Rhonda Blackmore, who addressed a gathering at the PAGC Cultural Centre in 2025.
“I think Red Dress Day is really important,” Blackmore told those in attendance. “We have to keep that focus. These are individuals who may not have been seen for several years and we have to remember that their families are still living with that anguish of not knowing what happened to them, not knowing where they are.”
Students have also played a role in raising awareness on Red Dress Day. In 2021, students lined Sixth Avenue East outside Carlton Comprehensive Public High School on Red Dress Day to call for support and community healing.
“The red dress serves as a visual reminder of those who are no longer with us, to bring awareness to this important issue,” reads a post on the school’s Facebook page.
